"To finish second in the standings is more than I expected. I had dreamed of it and there it is. On this Dakar, I only had good times. No problems, no crash. The bike worked well. I may not be the fastest rider but I am experienced. I know how to navigate, I know the technique and I am much more relaxed. With my first stage victory yesterday, I have lived so many things in two days. It’s great times. The party is on for weeks to come now. I’ve been training for this moment for 25 years!"Third place went to Yamaha rider Helder Rodrigues of Portugal. Six of the top ten finishers were KTM riders. Four stage victories for Coma
Marc Coma, Despres’ eternal rival in the KTM camp, finally finished in 15th place after penalties put him out of contention. But he still had four stage wins to his credit and, penalties aside, his actual riding time was remarkable close to that of Despres, proof enough that the two KTM riders are in a class of their own in international rally competition. The result was all the more remarkable because both Despres and Coma had to ride with air restrictors on their KTM 690 rally machines, to reduce the performance down to the level of a 450 cc bike, since the middle of 2010, the new standard for racing the Dakar. KTM continues its domination of the world’s greatest rally
The 2010 was yet another triumph for KTM, the Austria manufacturer whose sports machines play such a dominant role in international offroad competition. KTM first won the Dakar Rally in 2001 and has been undefeated ever since. Six of those victories have come with either Despres or Coma at the handlebars and each has now won three Dakar titles. 2010 Dakar Final Stage 14
1. Rubin Faria, Portugal KTM
2. Pal Ullevalseter, Norway, KTM
3. Helder Rodrigues, Portugal, Yamaha
4. Alan Duclos France, KTM
5. David Fretigne, France, Yamaha
6. Cyril Despres, Andorra, KTM (at 5’05")
8. Marc Coma, Spain, KTM 2010 Dakar Final Standings after Stage 14
1. Cyril Despres, Andorra, KTM (2010 winner)
2. Pal Ullevalseter, Norway, KTM (at 1:02’52")
3. Francisco Lopez, Chile, Aprilia, (at 1:08.34)
4. Helder Rodrigues, Portugal, Yamaha
5. David Fretigne, France, Yamaha
15. Marc Coma, Spain, KTM